Educational MMORPG

An MMORPG (massively multiplayer online roleplaying game) set in a noir like city.

All characters are upstart private detectives.

They can “design” their character- gender, skin tone, hair style and color, and clothing color.

They are awarded a base of 50 attribute points to distribute amongst 5 different traits- Speed, Accuracy, Knowledge, Stamina, and Charisma. The higher the speed, the faster the player moves around. The higher the accuracy, the quicker the more direct the target for the object searched for. The higher the knowledge, the more expensive, and harder, the jobs offered become. The higher the stamina, the longer the player can last without having to eat or sleep. The higher the charisma, the easier it is to get mini jobs from the librarians.

When they log on they start in their bedroom apartment. There is a bed, closet, mailbox, and refrigerator. The only thing (for starters) in their closet is a plain outfit, the color they chose when designing their character. The only thing in their refrigerator is an apple. Their mailbox is where they will receive job offers.

In the city, there are many city streets, a few clothing shops, some grocery stores, some banks, one main library, and a few branch libraries.

Inside the libraries there are different “mazes” of bookshelves. The “items” on the shelves start with Fiction A and End at the end of the Dewey Decimal system. Inside the maze of shelves there are several card catalog stations. In the library there is also a study area, with people sitting at tables, and a librarian at the reference desk.

Players earn money 2 ways: completing jobs that they receive in their mailbox, and winning wagers with other players.

The wagers work in the following way- a player challenges another player to an assignment they create. These challenges are limited to number of books, subject of books, and time to complete the task. They may wager money, food, or clothing. The challenges may only be entered into voluntarily, and the only reward for winning a challenge is the amount wagered.

The jobs received come in 3 types- Scavenger hunts with the answers found in books, scavenger hunts where the information is found in online databases, and information found by picking the differences between a photo delivered and a photo in the library’s archives. The payment increases with the difficulty of the job.

The scavenger hunts where answers are found in books also increase the players Speed and Knowledge attributes. The scavenger hunts where items are found in databases increases knowledge and accuracy. The spot the difference jobs only increase the accuracy.

There are also 3 “mini jobs”. One is keeping the noise down, where the player must move around the study area and monitor levels of volume at the different tables. The player’s charisma is increased if this is passed. One is sorting books in order, where the spines of the book would be labeled and the player would have to sort these in alphabetical or Dewey order. Accuracy is increased if this is completed in time. One is keeping the books on a shelf. The player has to place a book upon an unstable shelf, which causes other books to fall, he must not let them hit the ground. Instead he must “catch” them and put them back on the shelf. The player’s maximum stamina is increased if this is successfully done.

The player’s stamina constantly decreases from the moment they “wake up”. Eating can refill the stamina, but they can never go beyond their max. Their max is increased only through the mini-job. If they pass out outside of their home they lose whatever money they had on them and whatever clothes they were wearing. They can pay $10 for a cab that will put them right in their room. Sleeping restores all stamina.